The rumor of Cristiano Ronaldo returning to Manchester United has circulated for the last few months. Ronaldo's own statements about his commitment to Real Madrid seemed to have minimized the chances of this occurring, but it seems that the English club is desperate to bring back the superstar at whatever cost necessary.
According to a report from UK publication The Sun, the club met with sponsor Nike to come up with a plan to try and bring back Ronaldo to place that made him a superstar.
The publication notes that the main initiative came from Nike, which "is desperate to get the Portuguese star back to the biggest football club that wears their logo."
Nike is currently the sponsor of Ronaldo for boots and footwear. The Sun notes that Ronaldo sports an Adidas shirt when he plays for Real Madrid and believes "their global brand would be even stronger with him back in a Nike United shirt."
The publication also notes that Manchester's bid would have to be close to 75 Euros and include a player like Nani to get Real Madrid to sign. Recent rumors stated that Madrid Florentino Perez was interested in selling Ronaldo due to his lack of interest in signing a new contract with Madrid; his current one expires in 2015.
The idea of Ronaldo returning to United has already reached the players and some, including Manchester Nemanja Vidic have already stated their thoughts on the possibility. "It would be a big ask for many reasons. I would love to see Cristiano here. I could see it," said Vidic. "He is a United supporter. Even though he left he still follows United and still misses the club and the environment here."
He added, "The way he plays, he can play in England, he can shoot with his left, his right, he can jump and head the ball. He can dribble, he can do everything."